Lakeside and Harlem had their seasons come to an end. Harlem had a great run that they should be proud of. Also, with A.J. Brown and Cameron Garnett back next season, there should be a lot of excitement surrounding the program next year.

Lakeside used a brutal early schedule to prepare them for region play. The method worked, as they earned a playoff berth again this season.

The news is even better for Evans and Grovetown.

The Knights and Warriors both won at home and advance to Round 2 of the GHSA playoffs.

Well, four of our five public schools earned spots in the GHSA State Playoffs.

Evans scored late to knock off Heritage, 42-35, capping an exciting season for the Knights. They were a perfect 5-0 in region play to capture the region title. Grovetown used a stingy defense and much-improved offense to wrap up a home playoff spot. Harlem's dynamic duo in the backfield of Cameron Garnett and A.J. Brown helped propel the Bulldogs to a postseason berth, and Lakeside's tough early schedule prepared them for region play as they captured the No. 4 seed and a trip to play Tucker.

Augusta Prep was knocked out of the playoffs last Friday night, while Augusta Christian's season also came to a close. This week, the regular season wraps up for the public school programs with a region title on the line and playoff seeding still not quite settled.

Columbia County is not known as a hotbed for great running backs. As a matter of fact, since 1971, there have been exactly TWO running backs from Columbia County to earn First Team All-State honors. Zack Scott (Evans) earned a First Team nod in 1995 and was an honorable mention in 1994, making him the only back to be recognized statewide in multiple seasons. Jonathan Finch (Evans) was a First Team selection in 2008 as the Knights finished the season 10-1.

Columbia County lost a special man recently with the passing of Ronnie Hayslip last month.

If you've been to a baseball field in Columbia County over the last 30 years chances are you knew of Mr. Hayslip. He was a fixture at Evans games starting in the mid-80's all the way up to Columbia County Recreation Department games and travel ball in recent years.